Golf Swing Tips News November 2020
Since the lockdown has brought all golf lessons to a halt. There is time to look for good coaching content and I have found good information from two one-hour presentations from Dr David Neal and Dr Mark Bull. They present a range of interesting data about the golf swing. Specifically, Dr Neal presented short game data from the wedge play and Dr Bull talked about golf biomechanics.
Dr David Neal
From Dr Neal’s data that he recorded from of tour players hitting wedge shots from different distances. He pointed out that the elite golfers short game Kinematic Body Sequence is more timed together with short pitch shots from 10 to 50 yards compared to 55 yards and longer. From a starting point, Dr Neal identified the shorter swings to be 50 yards and closer and longer swings longer than 55 yards.
He noted that during a golfers downswing, a shallower angle of attack was better for performance than a steeper angle of attack. Also, how the golfers head moves forward slightly during the shorter swings compared with longer swings (which was very interesting).
Dr Mark Bull
Dr Mark Bull talked about how our upper body is influence by our lead big toe during the dowing swing and hitting area. That said, he also suggests avoiding any major dental work before a big golf game. Because dental work on your teeth can have a big impact on your bodies golf swing performance.
Notably, there were many more interesting points. But mainly I wanted to note the short game insights and the lead toe as important and practical parts of the golf swing technique.
Short Game | Golf Swing Tips News:
From Dr Neal’s presentation, I would recommend practising on the body to be more connected for pitch shots.
- One of the methods I use to coach the pitching swing is working with continuous swinging. The continuous swing is swinging the club back and forth repeatedly for approx 10 times before hitting a practice shot. Which I find a really good drill for the pitch swing timing and time the body movements.
- During the multiple practice swings, work on taking any tension from your body and feel a nice rhythm swing speed.
- Also during that practising swinging actions. Feel a soft increasing speed at impact as the club swings through the grass and smooth out that swinging area at impact. Mainly this is to avoid any jerky swings at impact.
Golf Swing | Lead Big Toe at Impact:
Mainly, golfers can work on keeping their lead big toe connected to the surface as the downswing starts and through impact. The following swing tips recommend how golfers can practice that movement. Particularly, the action is important if the lead toe or lead foot is becoming disconnected during the downswing.
- Check personal bodyweight distribution at the address position is evenly distributed ensuring that you can feel your lead toe is secure at the address.
- Make a series of practice swings. Ensure to feel the big toe secure during the downswing and through the hitting area.
- Certainly, check with your medical practitioner if you have issues with general mobility or if you have problems with your leading knee or leg. Identify how you can rotate through the hitting area and keep your lead toe connected.
- Use the Hip and full-body turning exercise methods to practice golf swing rotation. In this case, I would suggest being aware of the positions of the lead toe as golfers rotate fully into the finish position.
Finally, once we are back playing golf, I wish you all the very best of success! Please feel free to contact if you have any questions that you would like to discuss in further detail on Golf Swing Tips News.
- A previous blog post on Golf and Health, click to read on.